People

The Jello Belt: Mormon Culture and Burnout

The “Jello Belt” is a funny term I heard years ago to describe a certain culture found in Utah, Idaho, and Arizona. I thought it was a fun way to refer to the Jello-eating culture of Mormons and have used it ever since. And I thought it was the perfect non-serious name to kick off this column.

Welcome to a new little corner of Meridian where we will take a look at the Mormon culture, modern media, and anything else that strikes our fancy. For the purposes of this column, “Jello Belt” will not just refer to the heavily populated Mormon areas, but to the general culture of North American Mormons overall.

This column will come to you in a new format each week, and will often include videos, images, and music embeds to spark the conversation. And each column will conclude with a survey that we hope you will take. Your answers and insights will be shared in the column’s next appearance the following week.

We kick off the “Jello Belt” with a look at burnout within the Mormon culture.

Sound off! If you would like to participate in a non-scientific, just for curiousity’s sake survey about the Mormon culture and burnout, please click here. Survey responses will be shared next week.

If you would like to participate in a non-scientific, just for curiousity’s sake survey about the Mormon culture and burnout, please click here. Survey responses will be shared next week.

Erin Ann McBride is a writer, dreamer, and single woman. By day she works in marketing, and by night she hunts unicorns and writes political fiction romance novels, “You Heard It Here First,” and the sequel

JoAugust 20, 2013

I haven't seen a jello salad at church for years...and I never miss an activity. People today seem to know better --- that jello is like a Twinkie---totally nutrition free-- or as one of the apostles said "fried froth."

AnnAugust 14, 2013

Come on! I am a born and bred Mormon, aged 61, living in Utah, and in all those years have bought Jello maybe 6 times. Jello was my Mom's generation. We need to describe ourselves much more realistically. Telling intelligent women that we live in the Jello Belt is a slam.